英字新聞

The Yomiuri Shimbun September 27, 2013
Introduce reduced tax rate when consumption tax is raised to 8%
軽減税率　消費税８％時に導入を目指せ（9月26日付・読売社説）

If the government would like to soften the public’s feeling of shouldering a burden when it raises the consumption tax rate, it is essential to introduce a reduced tax rate to keep the tax on daily necessities at the current level.
　消費増税する際に国民の負担感を和らげるには生活必需品の税率を低く抑える軽減税率の導入が欠かせない。

The government and ruling parties must start taking concrete steps toward introducing the reduced tax rate simultaneously with the increase of the consumption tax rate to 8 percent.
　政府・与党は８％への増税と同時期の導入を目指し、具体的な作業に入るべきである。

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has reportedly decided to increase the consumption tax rate from 5 percent to 8 percent in April next year. He is now trying to compile a \5 trillion-level economic stimulus package to keep the economy from a possible slowdown after the tax rate is raised.
　安倍首相は、来年４月に消費税率を５％から８％に引き上げる方針を固めた。増税後の景気腰折れを防ぐため、５兆円規模の経済対策をまとめようとしている。

Although the economy has started to pick up, the recovery is not full-fledged. The road to overcoming deflation, for instance, is still unclear. It would be best for the government to shelve the tax rate increase to 8 percent. However, we understand that aiming at introducing an economic package is the second-best option.
　景気は上向いてきたものの、本格回復にはほど遠い。デフレ脱却への道も不透明である。本来は、８％への引き上げを見送るべきだが、次善の策として経済対策を打ち出す狙いは理解できる。

That said, we think the measures contained in the package currently being studied by the government to curb a possible downturn in personal spending are insufficient.
　ただ、増税で消費が落ち込みかねないことに対し、検討されている対策は不十分ではないか。

The consumption tax has a regressive character, meaning the burden it places on low-income earners is relatively heavy. For this reason, the government is now studying a “simplified benefit plan,” under which it will provide \10,000 to \15,000 per head in benefits to low-income households, such as those earning too little to have to pay resident taxes.
　消費税には、低所得層の負担が相対的に重くなる逆進性がある。このため政府は、住民税の非課税世帯などを対象に１人当たり１万〜１万５０００円を支払う「簡素な給付措置」を検討している。

However, the effects of such a temporary cash provision plan in supporting household finances after the tax hike will be short-lived. It is only reasonable to introduce a reduced tax rate that a wide range of people, including low-income earners, can expect to benefit from.
　だが、現金を一時的に支給する方法では、増税後の家計を支える効果は長続きしない。低所得層を含む幅広い消費者に恩恵が期待できる軽減税率の導入が適切だ。

As part of the economic stimulus package, the government and ruling parties are studying an option of moving ahead the abolition of a special corporate tax for reconstruction by one year. The tax was added to the regular corporate tax to provide a revenue source for reconstruction from the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.
　政府・与党は経済対策で、東日本大震災の復興財源のために上乗せした復興特別法人税の１年前倒しでの廃止を検討中である。

Reduce rate for basics

With the investment tax credit, a main pillar of the stimulus package, the government aims at establishing a virtuous cycle by prompting corporate earnings growth, which could in turn result in a pay hike.
　経済対策の柱となる投資減税は企業収益の拡大を促して賃上げにつなげる好循環も狙っている。

Consumers have strongly criticized the measures as preferential treatment of corporations. Also, we are worried that it will take time for the effects of the prop-up measure for companies to reach households.
　消費者には「企業優遇だ」といった批判が根強い。企業のてこ入れ策が家計に波及するまで時間がかかることも懸念される。

On the other hand, a reduced tax rate has the advantage of making consumers feel that they are shouldering less of a financial burden in their daily purchases.
　これに対し、軽減税率には、負担軽減を日常の買い物で消費者が実感しやすい利点がある。

The government and ruling parties have been pressing their aim to introduce the reduced tax rates when the consumption tax rate is raised to 10 percent, not when it is raised to 8 percent.
　政府・与党は、８％段階ではなく、１０％に引き上げる際に軽減税率の導入を目指すとしてきた。

However, a 3 percentage point rise all at once would have a significant impact on household finances. It is important to introduce the reduced rate when the government raises the tax rate to 8 percent and to keep it at the current 5 percent for selected items.
　しかし、３％も一気に増税されると、家計への影響は大きい。８％への引き上げ時から軽減税率を導入し、現在の５％に維持することが肝要だろう。

Items subject to the reduced tax rate should be narrowed down to basic food products that are indispensable for daily life, such as rice and miso bean paste, as well as newspapers, which support democracy and print culture, among other things.
　軽減税率の対象は、コメ、みそなど生活に欠かせない食料品や、民主主義と活字文化を支える新聞などに絞り込むべきである。

European countries have adopted reduced tax rates. Many nations set their value-added tax, the counterpart of Japan’s consumption tax, at about 20 percent. As reduced tax rates have already taken root in these countries, people are more likely to accept high tax rates.
　軽減税率は欧州各国で導入されている。日本の消費税にあたる付加価値税は２０％前後の国が多い。軽減税率の定着が、国民に高い税率を受け入れやすくしている。

As it is commonly recognized that a tax should not be levied on knowledge, most of these countries made newspapers subject to the reduced tax rate system. Japan must learn from such examples.
　「知識に課税せず」という共通認識があり、新聞を軽減対象とする国が大半を占める。日本も先例を参考にしなくてはならない。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Sept. 26, 2013)
（2013年9月26日02時28分 読売新聞）